To understand how energy and materials tie all life together, to experience good feelings when in touch with nature, to make personal lifestyle changes to live more in harmony with the Earth, and to help others do these things.

Generic permission forms in English and Spanish can be found at these links. Bring the Permission Forms with you to the Cooper Center. The completed form will be helpful should an emergency occur.

• Earthkeepers is offered November-March each school year with a maximum of 2 classes (60 students) in each weekly session. If your group is smaller than 30 students, your field trip group may be paired with a group from another school. Scheduling for these trips occurs in August and early September. Spots fill up quickly. Register as early as possible. Registration Form

All teachers must attend an Earthkeepers Orientation. The date for the 2022-2023 school year is Wednesday 9/28/22, 4:30pm - 6:30pm. Please let Cooper staff know ASAP if there you have conflicts with this date and time and we will make other arrangements. This information session will acquaint you with the program and facility. Veteran Earthkeeper teachers are encouraged to attend each year. If you have facilitated other trips to the Cooper Center in the past (Single Day or Overnight) you are still required to attend the Earthkeepers Orientation

4 weeks prior to your trip you should organize a Parent Chaperone meeting with all parents/guardians. This is a time to answer questions about Cooper Center and the Earthkeepers program. It is also a time to organize adult chaperones for the trip. Chaperones are a vital part of a successful Earthkeepers, and during the parent meeting tasks can be assigned such as food shopping and meal prep, cabin chaperones, transportation, and nighttime activities. 

You can find more information on the Adult Volunteers section on the Teacher & Parent Information page for details that you should go over at this meeting. If you are interested in having Cooper staff attend your parent meeting, please contact Brittne MacCleary, bmacc@arizona.edu. 

Make sure the week of the trip you do a few things:

• Confirm which students are coming and get final numbers to the Cooper staff.
• Confirm which adults are coming and make sure they know their jobs.
• If using parent drivers, make list of who is taking which students and items.
• Buy all the food supplies. Remember when buying that you will have to bring all leftovers back with you. We often have extra condiments and we always provide coffee for adults. Please contact us to confirm if we have something you might not need to buy.
• A few days before your trip, you should have students bring in their supplies to make sure that they have the proper gear (i.e. sleeping bags, rain coats, clothes).  If students aren’t prepared, this gives you some time to track down what is needed. See Packing List to confirm.
• Assign students to Sleeping Cabins. Each cabin sleeps 10 students and 2 chaperones.  If using fewer than all 6 cabins, let Cooper Center staff know if you have preferences as to which cabins are used.

All groups are expected to maintain camp cleanliness during their stay. Your group is responsible for packing up, sweeping and emptying the trash in the cabins on the last day of your stay. Additionally, we will ask for help from students and chaperones in tidying the kitchen and common spaces. Please notify Cooper staff if extra bathroom or kitchen supplies are needed during your trip. Please refer to our Departure checklist to review your group’s cleaning responsibilities.